The rebuilding Brooklyn Nets are shopping their veterans to gain future draft capital and improved lottery odds.
Cameron Johnson is by far the ball club's most valuable asset, and, per league-wide rumblings, the OKC Thunder are interested in pursuing his services.
Why Cameron Johnson is a perfect fit for Thunder
Oklahoma City leads the league in defensive rating, allows the lowest effective field goal percentage, and forces the most turnovers per game. That’s despite Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein not playing a single game together.
In other words, the Thunder’s championship-caliber defense requires no aid at the trade deadline.
Their offense is theoretically capable of doing enough to win a title, but there are noticeable flaws worth addressing via trade.
Adding elite outside shooting should be at the top of Sam Presti's to-do list.
When excluding wide-open 3-point attempts, the Thunder are currently knocking down just 33 percent of their triples. That’s concerning because playoff defenses tend to take away wide-open looks. OKC lost to Dallas last postseason largely due to their inability to hit lightly contested threes.
Enter Cam Johnson.
He’s a superb off-ball shooter who has made 40.6 percent of non-wide-open triples this season. Count the easy looks and Johnson’s three-point percentage jumps to 42.3 percent. This level of proficiency beyond the arc would be a perfect fit next to OKC’s drivers.
The Nets forward doesn’t merely act as a stationary shooter, either. He has notched the third-most handoff possessions in the NBA, and Johnson produces an elite 1.12 points per handoff possession. A dribble handoff (DHO) partnership with Hartenstein, in particular, is tantalizing to envision.
Overall, Johnson’s off-ball gravity pulls defenders away from driving lanes, and his off-ball movement could create chaos for help-defenders trying to keep an eye on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams.
Johnson also has a capable off-the-dribble jumper to bail out the offense in a pinch, and his transition scoring adds another dimension.
Now, the defense isn’t quite as good as advertised, but Johnson competes and cannot be labeled a liability. He brings desirable size (6-foot-8 with a 6-foot-10 wingspan) to the unit and will look better next to OKC’s defenders than Brooklyn’s.
Finally, the veteran comes off as humble and unselfish. That’s exactly the type of personality required if the Thunder want to make a trade. It’s worth noting that he has Chris Paul’s mentorship during his Suns days in common with SGA and Luguentz Dort.
In virtually all respects, Johnson seems like the best player on the market for OKC.
What Cameron Johnson would cost in a trade
Half of the league is eager to acquire him, so Cameron Johnson will not be cheap once the bidding war ends. The Nets likely ask for a young, promising prospect along with two first-round picks in any hypothetical trade negotiations.
Protections on the draft capital and the caliber of the prospect will obviously make this framework malleable, though.
So what could a potential deal look like for the Thunder? First, they need to legally send back enough salary to take on Johnson’s $22,500,000 salary.
The Thunder sit below the first apron, which means they are allowed to receive more salary than they send – a huge advantage over other first or second-apron suitors.
However, OKC is hard-capped at the first apron, but they have $16,225,703 of space below the threshold. That’s more than enough to make it a non-factor here.
Based on the CBA, a team below the first apron can receive up to $7,500,000 more in a trade if the incoming salary lies somewhere between $7,250,001 and $29,000,000. The move would install a first-apron hard cap (irrelevant for this situation).
Therefore, OKC must trade a minimum of $15,000,000 in salary to the Nets for Johnson.
Ousmane Dieng is highly unlikely to crack the playoff rotation over the next two seasons before he needs an extension, so his $5,027,040 salary should be an easy choice. That leaves $9,972,960 remaining.
Isaiah Joe ($12.9M) and Aaron Wiggins ($10.5M) would each get OKC to the threshold, but relinquishing either of them is far from ideal given their play, chemistry, and bargain long-term deals.
Another option would be sending Kenrich Williams ($6.6M) and Nikola Topic ($4.9M) together.
Topic is exactly the kind of asset that Brooklyn wants to snag, and he’s not helping OKC’s playoff run this season. Ajay Mitchell’s unexpected emergence as a reliable bench ball-handler may make Topic more expendable in Presti’s eyes.
The Thunder can then add enough draft capital to satisfy the Nets. They shouldn't pay more than two firsts because they are already losing valuable players.
Overall, a trade for Johnson will likely cost a fan favorite (Wiggins, Joe, Kenrich) and premium draft capital. Presti must decide whether the juice is worth the squeeze relatively quickly because the Nets are negotiating now.